Greg Hastings' Tournament Paintball MAX'D Review (Xbox)
Submitted on: Nov 14, 2005 by Mark FossenGreg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd puts my head in a bit of a spin. The sport of paintball itself, featuring points for eliminating enemies and capturing the flag, is really just a live-action videogame. It is Halo in the park, Rainbow Six with inflatable cover, and Perfect Dark with paint. The fact that there are professional paintballers, that players like Chris LaSoya or Keely Watson or Greg Hastings himself are household names outside their own house is surprising enough. What's more surprising is that now we have a videogame based on a sport that is itself based on a videogame. We are now playing videogame simulations of videogames, and I can't help but find it odd. The cover art for the game proudly proclaims it is the "#1 Action Sports Shooter Franchise" and of this fact, I have little doubt. Faced with a firing squad (paintball or otherwise), I doubt I could name a competitor for that status. For gamers not specifically looking for a paintball sim, though, it's status as an "Action Sports Shooter" doesn't mean much. After all, there is no shortage of games that let you lead squads, capture flags, and shoot people: it's called a "first person shooter" (or FPS) and they litter the landscape of gaming.
In many ways, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd measures up to its FPS competition. The AI of both your teammates and opposition ranges from at least passable at worst to excellent at best as the opposition will deceive you and bait you through their use of cover. And cover is the name of the game here: this is far from a run-n-gun shooter like Castle Wolfenstein or Halo, and demands the patience and forethought that is seen in deliberately paced squad shooters like the various Tom Clancy games. You'll issue commands to teammates to advance from one covered position to another, scanning the often muddy horizon for flashes of the other team. You're not a solo marksman, here. Your teammates are crucial and you'll need to manage your team to achieve victory. Like the rest of the excellent control system, issuing commands is often as easy as getting your teammate in the crosshairs and pressing a button. There's even support for voice commands, though I didn't have much luck getting it to recognize most of the long list of commands available.
One game mechanic in Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd that will come as a surprise to most gamers is, essentially, "cheating made fun". Not only can you cheat, you are encouraged to do so. Unlike most first person shooters, there's no "life" or "health" here - one paintball hit and you're eliminated. To balance this, a "Cheat Meter" appears whenever you're hit. It's a simple swinging indicator that you'll try to stop in the green zone in the middle. With skill and luck, you'll find the pellet didn't break, or that you wiped the paint off. Time it wrong, though, and the ref will call you out, or even penalize you by eliminating additional teammates. For those who want to play without cheating, it can be turned off in options. It's an important gameplay balance, though, that allows for mistakes while still remaining somewhat true to the sport of paintball. Each time you wipe off paint, the meter moves faster, ensuring that trying to cheat instead of sneak is not a recipe for success. There are also some hits - like a shot right in the goggles - that simply can't be cheated away.
First person shooters are often graphics showcases, demonstrating the best a system has to offer. That's far from the case here, though, as Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd shares the same look as much of its Activision extreme sports brethren. It's the definition of mediocre graphics: not glaring problems, but also nothing spectacular. The framerate's fluid and fast, and the limited animation is done well. It's extremely competent, but offers little eye candy with it's limited palette and flat textures. That "competent" feeling from the graphics extends throughout the gameplay. There's not much atmosphere, and nothing that sets it apart from other first person shooters. There's no adrenaline rush, no real sense of danger or excitement. There's not much "wrong" on the playing field, but there's not much that's right, either.
"Career" mode is utterly standard: from a limited list of options you'll create a character, take him though many progressively tougher tournaments, and earn branded merchandise and skill points that will make you character better and better. Like so much else in the game, it's completely predictable and completely mediocre. Though there's a huge variety of fields and setups and a lot of goodies to unlock and purchase, there's nothing in "Career" that makes it feel like an actual career. It's a standard videogame ladder, and doesn't resemble any sort of real season or real world. Die-hard paintballers won't spend much time in "Career", though due to the wealth of online options. Like many shooters of the type, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd is best played with other people, preferable with a regular team that is used to working together and honing strategies, roles, and communication. The developers were obviously aware of this, as the Live portion of the game really dedicates itself to the die-hard: not only are teams supported, where you can set websites, mottos, and logos, but there's also the ability to create fields and use them online. Since the both team and field creation is supported with easy and usable features, I could see this game having a long life for those that truly appreciate the gameplay.
There's no doubt that Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd is highly competent, and does a good job simulating the sport of paintball with reasonable accuracy. If you're specifically looking for a paintball videogame, I expect you'd be pleased with the purchase. It tilts a bit towards the boring, but the excellent online implementation means that if you're really into paintball, this is the game for you. Outside of paintball fans, though, I can't recommend the game. In a crowded field, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd does nothing to distinguish itself. The kind of gaming you'd get out of this can be had with many other titles that provide a much more enjoyable experience. Bump the score up if you’re a die-hard paintball fan, but for the large majority who just want a good game it’s hard to recommend this game as anything other than a change-of-page rental.
In many ways, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd measures up to its FPS competition. The AI of both your teammates and opposition ranges from at least passable at worst to excellent at best as the opposition will deceive you and bait you through their use of cover. And cover is the name of the game here: this is far from a run-n-gun shooter like Castle Wolfenstein or Halo, and demands the patience and forethought that is seen in deliberately paced squad shooters like the various Tom Clancy games. You'll issue commands to teammates to advance from one covered position to another, scanning the often muddy horizon for flashes of the other team. You're not a solo marksman, here. Your teammates are crucial and you'll need to manage your team to achieve victory. Like the rest of the excellent control system, issuing commands is often as easy as getting your teammate in the crosshairs and pressing a button. There's even support for voice commands, though I didn't have much luck getting it to recognize most of the long list of commands available.
One game mechanic in Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd that will come as a surprise to most gamers is, essentially, "cheating made fun". Not only can you cheat, you are encouraged to do so. Unlike most first person shooters, there's no "life" or "health" here - one paintball hit and you're eliminated. To balance this, a "Cheat Meter" appears whenever you're hit. It's a simple swinging indicator that you'll try to stop in the green zone in the middle. With skill and luck, you'll find the pellet didn't break, or that you wiped the paint off. Time it wrong, though, and the ref will call you out, or even penalize you by eliminating additional teammates. For those who want to play without cheating, it can be turned off in options. It's an important gameplay balance, though, that allows for mistakes while still remaining somewhat true to the sport of paintball. Each time you wipe off paint, the meter moves faster, ensuring that trying to cheat instead of sneak is not a recipe for success. There are also some hits - like a shot right in the goggles - that simply can't be cheated away.
First person shooters are often graphics showcases, demonstrating the best a system has to offer. That's far from the case here, though, as Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd shares the same look as much of its Activision extreme sports brethren. It's the definition of mediocre graphics: not glaring problems, but also nothing spectacular. The framerate's fluid and fast, and the limited animation is done well. It's extremely competent, but offers little eye candy with it's limited palette and flat textures. That "competent" feeling from the graphics extends throughout the gameplay. There's not much atmosphere, and nothing that sets it apart from other first person shooters. There's no adrenaline rush, no real sense of danger or excitement. There's not much "wrong" on the playing field, but there's not much that's right, either.
"Career" mode is utterly standard: from a limited list of options you'll create a character, take him though many progressively tougher tournaments, and earn branded merchandise and skill points that will make you character better and better. Like so much else in the game, it's completely predictable and completely mediocre. Though there's a huge variety of fields and setups and a lot of goodies to unlock and purchase, there's nothing in "Career" that makes it feel like an actual career. It's a standard videogame ladder, and doesn't resemble any sort of real season or real world. Die-hard paintballers won't spend much time in "Career", though due to the wealth of online options. Like many shooters of the type, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd is best played with other people, preferable with a regular team that is used to working together and honing strategies, roles, and communication. The developers were obviously aware of this, as the Live portion of the game really dedicates itself to the die-hard: not only are teams supported, where you can set websites, mottos, and logos, but there's also the ability to create fields and use them online. Since the both team and field creation is supported with easy and usable features, I could see this game having a long life for those that truly appreciate the gameplay.
There's no doubt that Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd is highly competent, and does a good job simulating the sport of paintball with reasonable accuracy. If you're specifically looking for a paintball videogame, I expect you'd be pleased with the purchase. It tilts a bit towards the boring, but the excellent online implementation means that if you're really into paintball, this is the game for you. Outside of paintball fans, though, I can't recommend the game. In a crowded field, Greg Hastings Tournament Paintball Max'd does nothing to distinguish itself. The kind of gaming you'd get out of this can be had with many other titles that provide a much more enjoyable experience. Bump the score up if you’re a die-hard paintball fan, but for the large majority who just want a good game it’s hard to recommend this game as anything other than a change-of-page rental.
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